With respect to the front bed, I'm on side with removing the tree. The trunks really only look good from one angle, and from the other angles it's not a real beauty. And when it comes to suckers, I have very low tolerance! But what really bugs me in that bed is the shrubs, and I would totally rip them out as well and use that space to create a lower profile flowering garden. My urge is to open the space visually. If you want a tree, I don't see that it has to be in the bed; it could be closer to the front of the property. With the long narrow bed, if liriope will make you smile, you're a pretty happy person :-) it takes more to get a smile out of me, I'm afraid! But in these long narrow beds against a wall, it is often about what will grow the way you want, rather than about what we like, and I admit I've got a long and troubled history with trying to grow more interesting things in a bed like this, because almost anything tall (anything deciduous in particular) will always be snaking away from the wall toward the light. As a general rule, evergreen material will grow much more reliably upright even when the light is one-sided. So from a maintenance and looking tidy perspective, you could do a lot worse than a row of liriope, daylilies, or annuals. So much depends on what kind of a gardener you are; how much effort you want to go to to choose and source plants and so on, and then what kind of maintenance you want to do. For example, what would look quite spectacular along this wall, and go with the somewhat manicured impression that the house itself makes, would be an assortment of specialty conifers and evergreens, the type that are narrow and slow growing, either upright or weeping or just narrow by nature (or even spiralled or otherwise topiaried), either just mulched or dressed up with colourful lower-growing plants. But those plants you have to go hunting for, and it takes some work to arrange them. And then there's the option of containers (on gravel or mulch) and/or wall art. Or vines on trellises, that would require you to tuck them all the time and then clear them in winter. It all depends on what kind of work you want to do initially and ongoing. But what about the area along the fence? You might be able to create a more generous bed there. You can certainly borrow light from across the fence, and if you can also borrow airspace above the fence, then some small trees might even work. KarinL

Steve, I thought this would give you a better idea of how large Squash Casserole is (and did divide it last year). Here is a another hosta for camparison, this is Elegans which has been in this spot for 8 years. Karen I would say the average age of most of my hostas are anywhere from 4-8 years. I did have the advantage of having some great local growers, so I often bought mature hostas. TJ I did want to kick the hosta hater right down the street! LOL Jen

Fantastic! If I don't go with white cabs that is exactly the color scheme and look I want. Come to CA and do mine! Absolutely beautiful. I love everything and your pendants are so different. Unless I missed it up thread, can you please provide a style # or name and the source for those and your drum lighting fixture? I'd love to see how those pendants look turned on. So cool. Also regarding your layout, can you provide more info? Sounds like you knocked out some walls to make one room, but I'm having difficulty visualizing what was where. Can you elaborate and were the walls removed load bearing? I ask because we have a similar situation. Kitchen with a nook to one side that's all windows and both seperated from the family room by a half wall at the sink and "behind" the kitchen a seperate small dining room we never use. I'd love a more open floorplan and great room effect like yours, but we have lots of structural issues and still trying to decide if it's doable. So I'm just trying to visualize your before and after layout. That info would be helpful if you're willing to share. Thanks! Again, outstanding kitchen!!

Thanks Mama and Donna. OMG Donna, it does look like a dog. Ha ha ha! It is 2 big bath towels, 4 hand towels and 2 wash cloths. @ Whirlpool_trainee....I have not replaced my wonderfully big & fast American/Swedish/Mexican ;) Electrolux (or at least not yet....LOL). I just could not, not buy this brand new, old stock T1415 Miele dryer. I had to have it! So far I have dried big bath towels, a huge load of whites and a very large load of athletic clothes (I kept the loads the same size, as I would have in my Electrolux 8 cu. ft. dryer)....and the big bath towels only took maybe 5-7 mins. longer using the Miele. The whites maybe took 2-3 mins longer and the athletic clothing dried in roughly 27 mins (as fast, if not faster than the Electrolux). This "small" T1415 dryer is almost keeping up with the Electrolux! Of course the Elux has more settings, more temp. options and more end of load options...but the materials and apparent build quality on this Miele is insane good!!!